Minnesota Vikings cornerback Terence Newman, facing, defends against wide receiver Stefon Diggs in the afternoon workout at the team’s training camp at Minnesota State University in Mankato on Monday, August 1, 2016. (Pioneer Press: John Autey)

The Vikings cornerback, who turns 38 on Sept. 4, is in line this season to be the NFL’s oldest defensive player. He doesn’t deny he has paid close attention to some other pro athletes who have defied age.

“As far as old guys, Deion (Sanders) played quite a while, Darrell Green played quite a while,’’ Newman said. “Nolan Ryan. A-Rod (Alex Rodriguez). Derek Jeter. Kobe (Bryant). Tim Duncan. But the fact that they were still quite successful later in their career, it’s awesome. You look at that and say, ‘Hey, I want to be like that.’ ’’

Rodriguez, 41, played his final game Friday for the Yankees. But he spent his twilight years at designated hitter, although he did have a token appearance in his finale at third base.

Newman mans one of the most demanding positions in any sport. Charles Woodson, at 39, was the NFL’s oldest defensive player last season with Oakland before retiring, but he had three years earlier moved from cornerback to safety.
Minnesota Vikings cornerback Terence Newman, right, uses his head to stop wide receiver Stefon Diggs in the afternoon workout at the team’s training camp at Minnesota State University in Mankato on Monday, August 1, 2016. (Pioneer Press: John Autey)

“Terence is definitely amazing,’’ said Vikings cornerback Captain Munnerlyn, 28. “It’s mind-blowing. It’s a hard thing, especially at cornerback. You still got to have speed. You still got to be able to tackle. You still got to be able to cover those guys. He’s 38 and he’s still in the game.’’

Newman did not make the trip to Cincinnati for Friday’s 17-16 win in the preseason opener because of a nagging injury he said isn’t serious. He’s been a starter since entering the NFL with Dallas in 2003, and is now trying to hold off second-year man Trae Waynes.

As for being the NFL’s oldest defensive player, Newman said he still must make the 53-man roster. Assuming that happens, Newman will pause to acknowledge the feat.

“I got to make it to the first game before I can have that title officially, but when I get there, then I’ll relish it,’’ Newman said. “(Woodson), he’s a hall of famer. I don’t think I’m going to be in the hall of fame, but (being the oldest defensive player), that’s just a testament of the heart and dedication of doing all I had to do to stay here at this point.

“You can throw the age part out, I think it’s just amazing to play cornerback in the NFL, period. There are so many people in this world that have dreamed of playing professional sports and they never get the opportunity.’’

Newman takes nothing for granted. He keeps in shape and watches his diet.

Newman has told his much-younger teammates one secret to his longevity is drinking red wine, and they seemingly are trying to find that fountain of youth for themselves.

“I think some guys who hated wine might have tried it now,’’ said safety Harrison Smith, 27. “But whatever Terence is doing is working … We’ve got a bunch of 20-somethings, and I’m sore running around. We ask him, ‘How do you play this long? How do you do this?’ I think some of it is he’s very gifted but he’s also very smart. He takes care of himself off the field, keeps his body in check.’’

“We’re joking, but it’s really more of a sign of respect that he’s been able to play that long, especially at corner,’’ Smith said. “It’s almost unheard of.’’

Newman mentioned Green, a hall of famer who played cornerback until he was 42 with Washington in 2002 and was known as the “Ageless Wonder.’’ He referred to Sanders, a hall of famer who was a cornerback at 38 with Baltimore in 2005.

After Newman entered the NFL with the Cowboys in 2003, Mike Zimmer was his defensive coordinator for four years. Zimmer then had that position when he was reunited with Newman in Cincinnati for the 2012 and 2013 seasons.

With Zimmer moving on to become Minnesota’s coach, Newman joined him last year, and started all 16 games. Now, Newman is entering his eighth season with Zimmer, and the coach hasn’t seen any signs of him slowing down.

“He looks like he always does,’’ Zimmer said. “He’s the same guy. He works the same.’’

Newman’s work ethic has received plenty of acclaim. During a walk-through earlier this month at Vikings training camp in Mankato, Minn., while some players stood idly on the sideline when not in a drill, Newman got down and did some push-ups.

“You have to have a certain mind-set to be able to go out and compete at an older age and compete against guys that are 10 years, 12 years, heck, 15 years younger than you,’’ Newman said. “So for me, it’s like it’s fun. I try to stay young to come out and compete with these young guys, and go against these receivers who are just coming into the league at 21.’’

Nemwan has been fending off younger challengers at cornerback for years, and he’ll try to do that once again with Waynes, 24. When Newman was an NFL rookie, Waynes was 11 and in his second year of pee-wee ball in Kenosha, Wis.

Chris joined the Pioneer Press in 2013 to cover the Vikings. He was a longtime NBA writer with the Akron Beacon Journal, Rocky Mountain News and AOL FanHouse. Before coming to Minnesota, he covered the Miami Heat and Dolphins for Fox Sports. Chris has won six awards in the past three Pro Football Writers of America contests. Chris is a graduate of Northwestern University, where he spent his college years watching the losingest team in the history of Division I-A football.

As you comment, please be respectful of other commenters and other viewpoints. Our goal with article comments is to provide a space for civil, informative and constructive conversations. We reserve the right to remove any comment we deem to be defamatory, rude, insulting to others, hateful, off-topic or reckless to the community. See our full terms of use here.

More in Minnesota Vikings

In the midst of the best season of his career, Vikings defensive end Danielle Hunter has been named to Pro Bowl for the first time in his career. He highlights the Vikings’ Pro Bowl selections, which also include linebacker Anthony Barr, safety Harrison Smith and wide receiver Adam Thielen.

Mackensie Alexander is the first person to blame himself for a slow start to his NFL career. A loudmouth prospect out of Clemson, he made waves as a 22-year-old, dubbing himself the best cornerback in the 2016 NFL Draft. That confidence helped him get drafted in the second round by the Vikings, though it ended up being his downfall during...

A five-reception game against the New England Patriots a couple of weeks ago really messed up Aldrick Robinson's reception-to-touchdown ratio. It's become a running joke inside the Vikings locker room that all Robinson does is score touchdowns. He has five touchdown receptions this season, third on the team behind stars Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs. More than one-fourth of his...

After the 2016 season, Vikings nose tackle Linval Joseph invited teammate Danielle Hunter to be his guest at the Pro Bowl in Orlando, Fla. Hunter, then a second-year defensive end, was coming off a season in which he had 12 1/2 sacks. Joseph wanted to give him a taste of the Pro Bowl, motivating him to one day be named...

Mike Zimmer said to run the ball more, and this time the offensive coordinator really listened. The Vikings coach expressed his displeasure about not running enough after losses at Chicago on Nov. 18 and at New England on Dec. 2 under previous offensive coordinator John DeFilippo. The ground game not coming together was a key reason DeFilippo was fired the...

Forgive the casual fan for doing a double take when looking at the box score from Sunday's game between the Minnesota Vikings and Miami Dolphins. While a rather dominant 41-17 victory might suggest the Vikings got a big performance out of star receivers Stefon Diggs or Adam Thielen, the team's leading receiver on this particular day was far from a...